Kendrapada, July 10 (UNI) Thousands of colonial birds have begun arriving at the Matha-adiha, Durgaprasad Dia and Laxmiprasad Dia heronries inside Bhitarkanika National Park with the onset of the monsoon, marking the beginning of the annual nesting and breeding season.
Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF), Kanika Forest Range, Manas Kumar Das said around 30,000 colonial birds have already reached the three heronries.
The birds, popularly known as monsoon or residential colonial birds, include the Asian Openbill Stork, Black-headed Ibis, Purple Heron, Grey Heron, Pond Heron and Little Cormorant.
The dense mangrove forests and the park's serene, pollution-free environment continue to provide an ideal habitat, attracting thousands of winged visitors every monsoon for nesting and breeding.
Every year, as many as 11 species of colonial birds congregate in Bhitarkanika during the rainy season. These include the Asian Openbill Stork, Little Cormorant, Intermediate Egret, Great Egret, Little Egret, Purple Heron, Grey Heron, Night Heron, Darter, Black-headed Ibis and Cattle Egret.
The birds construct their nests on mangrove tree species such as Guan, Sundari, Sinduka, Bani, Jagula, Keruan and Oruan, which offer favourable nesting conditions.
For the past several years, the Matha-adiha, Laxmiprasad Dia and Durgaprasad Dia heronries have remained the preferred nesting and breeding grounds for these birds. However, the birds have once again avoided the Bagagahan heronry, once regarded as a paradise for monsoon colonial bird species.
According to Rajnagar Mangrove (Forest) and Wildlife Division Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Vardaraj Gaonkar, the last bird census recorded an estimated 1,30,796 colonial birds belonging to 10 species across Bhitarkanika's heronries.
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